Subject: Six-spotted Sap-feeding Beetle, Prometopia sexmaculata

Location: Upshur County, West Virginia

Stock Number: 05-7433

Comments: Bearing a modest resemblance to a Tortoise Beetle, Prometopia sexmaculata is actually in the family Nitidulidae, or Sap-Feeding Beetles. The reason for the flattened shape is that these beetles spend most or all of their lives living in the narrow spaces under the bark of dead trees, feeding on sap especially in the Spring.

Their range includes much of eastern North America, and extends at least as far west as Illinois. Dates on records of this species range from very early Spring to late Fall.